1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to techniques for monitoring wear in a liner of a pipe; and more particularly relates to techniques for monitoring wear in a liner of a pipe using a chemical taggant of tracer that may be detected to determine an indication about a degree of liner or coating wear or a location of wear in the pipe.
2. Description of Related Art
Interior pipewall coatings have been developed for highly abrasive applications in industrial sectors to mitigate erosion of the pipewall. One example of this is in the Oil Sands industry, where the ‘tailings’ from a bitumen recovery process plant, which comprises mainly water and clay/sands, is pumped to a tailing pond, or a dewatering process facility. In such applications, standard carbon steel pipes can erode through the side wall in a matter of months, particularly in locations where there are bends in the pipeline.
Several types of pipe coating have been proposed to reduce this wear, including hard metal coatings such as Chromium, and polymeric based materials, such as urethane coatings. With urethane coatings, such as IRACORE, the pipe lifetime can be considerably increased—potentially to as much as 10 years. However, it would be desirable to be able to monitor the integrity of the pipewall coating, and the extent of wear of the urethane.
FIG. 1a(1) shows a piping system having known steel pipes, while FIG. 1a(2) shows one such steel pipe breached by highly abrasive fluid flowing therein.
FIGS. 1a(3) and 1b show known pipes P having Urethane liner L.
In view of the aforementioned understanding, there is a need in the industry for a better way to monitor liner wear in pipelines.